Remembering My Grandparents

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Lesson 5

         Remembering My Grandparents

              Text A

    When memory beganme, my grandfather was past sixty-a great tall man with thick hair becoming gray. He had black eyes andstraight nose which endeda slightly flattened tip. Once he explained seriouslyme that he got that flattened tip assmall child when he fell downsteppedhis nose.

    The little markslaughter atcornershis eyes wereprodncta kindlyhumorous nature. The yearswork which had bentshoulders had never dulledhumour norlovea joke.

    Everywhere he went, "Gramp" made friends easily. Atendhalf an hour you felt you had known him all your life.soon learned that he hatedgive orders , but that when he had to, he triedmakeorders sound like suggestions.

    One July morning, as he was leavinggothe cornfield, he said : "Edwin, you can pick uppotatoesthe field today if you wantdo that. " Then he drove away withhorses.
    The day passed, anddid not have any desirepick up potatoes. Evening camethe potatoes were stillthe field. Gramp, dustytired, ledhorsesget their drink.

    "How many bagspotatoes were there?" Gramp inquired. "I don't know. "
    "How many potatoes did you pick up?"
    "I didn't pick any. " "Not any! Why not?"
    "You saidcould pick, them up ifwanted to. You didn't sayhad to. "
    Innext few minuteslearnedlessonwould not forget: when Gramp saidcould ifwanted to, he meant thatshould want to.
    Gram hated crueltyinjustice. The injusticeshistory, even thosea thousand years before, angered her as much asinjusticesher own day.

    She also haddeep lovebeauty. When she was almost seventy-five,had gonelive with oneher daughters, she spentdelightful morning washing dishes because, as she said,beautiful patternsthe dishes gave her pleasure. The bird,flowers,clouds-all that was beautiful around her- pleased her. She was likefatherthe French painter, Millet, who usedgather grassshow ithis son , saying , "See how beautif ul this! "

    Inpioneer society itthe harder qualitiesmindcharacter that arevalue. The softer virtues are considered unnecessary. Menwomen struggling dailyearnliving are unable, even formoment,forgetbusinesspreserving their lives. Only unusual people, like my grandparents, managekeepsofter qualitiesa worlddaily struggle.
    Such weretwo people with whomspentmonths from JuneSeptemberthe wonderful dayssummeryouth.

            Text B

    He always rose earlyenjoy at least two hourssolitudethe housegarden beforerestthe family came down In winter he spent mostthe time readingwriting. In sum mer he likedget outdoorsworkthe kitchen garden ortakedog forwalkthe neighbouring woodsfields Whateverweather, there was plentyoccupy him.

 Although he wascreaturehabit, there seemedbe an infinite varietyhis pursuits. He wrote book reviews regularlytwothe national weeklies. He worked conscientiouslyspecial subject, Indian History,was thus onethe world authoritiesit;

 he collected modern abstract paintingsso hadcirclefriends amongst artistssculptors; there was hardly anything he did not know about traditional jazzhe often entertained both BritishAmerica n jazz musicians He wassuperb cookknewlot about FrenchGerman food.

 His family adored him anda sense he was spoiled by them. At first glance you would have taken him forretired army officer-his bearing was erect,hair was cut short, he was fussy aboutclothes, which were always neat, cleanconventional. He likedkeep fit,this was reflectedhis clear, steady blue eyeshealthy suntanned complexion. He hardly ever watched TV, but enjoyedgood filman occasional evening attheatre.

           Additional Information

    The elderly who find great rewardssatisfactionstheir later lives aresmall minorit.ythis country. But they do exist. They are the"aged elite".
    Whatmost striking about these peopletheir capacitygrowth. When Arthur Rubinstein was eighty, someone told him that he was playingpiano better than ever. "I think so," he agreed. "Nowtake chancesnever took before.usedbe so much more careful. No wrong notes. Not too bold ideas. Nowlet goenjoy myself andhell with everything exceptmusic!'

    Another reasonthe successthe aged elite aretraits they' have formed earliertheir lives. A sixty-eight-year-old woman, three times marriedwidowed , says , "It's not just what you do when you're past sixty-five.
It's what you did all your life that matters. If you've livedfull life, developed your mind, you'll be ableusepast sixty-five. Letyoung people put thattheir soupeat it. "

    Along with frankness comes humor. A sensehumor,course,not something that suddenly arrives at age sixty-five. Itan aid people use all their livescope with tension. "Humor, " says Dr James Birren, noted psychologist, also leads youjoin with other people. "

    The abilityassociate with othersanother traitthe aged elite. "There are two waysdeal with stress," says Birren. "You either reach out or withdraw. The reachers seek out other peopleshare their problems insteadpulling away. "
    Growing, active, humorous, sharing-these are all qualities that describeaged elite.

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